Mor Spirit wins Los Alamitos Futurity

LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. (AP) Mor Spirit defeated stablemate Toews On Ice by 1 1/4 lengths in the $350,000 Los Alamitos Futurity for 2-year-olds on Saturday, giving Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert a record eighth victory in the Grade 1 race.

It was Baffert's first 1-2 finish in the race.

Ridden by Hall of Famer Gary Stevens, Mor Spirit ran 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.54 and paid $3.40, $2.40 and $2.10 as the 7-10 favorite.

Toews On Ice, named for Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews, returned $3.20 and $2.60 as the 5-2 second choice.

''Turning for home it was a good feeling,'' said Baffert, who won last year with Dortmund. ''I knew I was going to win the race, just didn't know with which one.''

I'malreadythere, a 25-1 shot trained by Hall of Famer Jerry Hollendorfer, was another six lengths back in third and paid $3.80 to show.

Mor Spirit was sixth among eight horses after the opening six furlongs. He increased his career earnings to $288,400, with two wins in four starts.

''This is the time of the year when you want to see something like this,'' Baffert said.

Stevens was enthusiastic about Toews On Ice.

''I just let him gallop until the eighth pole,'' he said. ''He's really progressed since his first start and he's going to get better and better with more experience and distance.''